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Trump's immigration promises prompt citizenship rush

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Irma Reyas, who recently became a citizen of the United States, gives her 10-month-old son Ocean Landry a kiss while her daughter Lluvia Landry, 3, stands by after arriving home after picking the two kids up from daycare Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, in Sioux Falls. Joe Ahlquist / Argus Leader

Irma Reyas, who recently became a citizen of the United States, gets a hug from her daughter Lluvia Landry, 3, while picking her up from daycare Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, in Sioux Falls. Joe Ahlquist / Argus Leader

Irma Reyas, who recently became a citizen of the United States, buckles in her daughter Lluvia Landry, 3, after picking her up from daycare Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, in Sioux Falls. Joe Ahlquist / Argus Leader

Irma Reyas, who recently became a citizen of the United States, buckles in her 10-month-old son Ocean Landry after picking him from daycare Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, in Sioux Falls. Joe Ahlquist / Argus Leader

Lluvia Landry, 3, plays while her mom Irma Reyas, who recently became a citizen of the United States, gets Landry's brother out of their vehicle after arriving home from picking the two kids up from daycare Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, in Sioux Falls. Joe Ahlquist / Argus Leader

Irma Reyas, who recently became a citizen of the United States, gets her 10-month-old son Ocean Landry out of their vehicle after arriving home from picking him and his sister Lluvia Landry, 3, up from daycare Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, in Sioux Falls. Joe Ahlquist / Argus Leader

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Irma Reyas, who recently became a citizen of the United States, buckles in her daughter Lluvia Landry, 3, after picking her up from daycare Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, in Sioux Falls.(Photo: Joe Ahlquist / Argus Leader)Buy Photo

Irma Reyes couldn’t take the uncertainty of losing her American Dream.

The 28-year-old El Salvador native came to the United States illegally as a child, fleeing the violence of her homeland. She earned amnesty because it had been granted to her parents – and millions more – in the 1980s by President Ronald Reagan. She went to community college, then the University of South Dakota, then found work as a teacher in Sioux Falls.

She met her husband. Had a daughter. Then a son.

She could have taken the next step and become a citizen years ago, but never bothered. Vitriol from the presidential campaign created a new sense of urgency. A green card was no longer good enough to protect against Reyes' fear of having her life ripped apart.

“It can just easily be taken away by what people in power say,” Reyes said. “If the wrong person was in power, then I didn’t have anything else to fight with.”

The election season is creating a new kind of pressure for immigrants in Sioux Falls who have long put off becoming a citizen. Heated rhetoric against undocumented immigrants is inspiring more legal residents to finish paperwork for naturalization so they can vote in the November elections and escape the fear of deportation.

Immigration is a key debate point between candidates HIllary Clinton and Donald Trump as the fall elections come to a conclusion.

For Pilar Cabrera. it was Trump's campaign that prompted her to apply for citizenship last September.

The 41-year-old college professor registered to vote in June, days after going to Mount Rushmore for her naturalization ceremony. Cabrera moved to the United States from Mexico 14 years ago, met her husband and found work at Sioux Falls’ Augustana University.

Cabrera doesn’t mince words when she talks about the Republican nominee for president.

“I think he is terribly dangerous because he has really criminalized Mexicans,” Cabrera said.

Trump has made an effort to reach out to minority groups and immigrants, including his visit to Mexico last week and outreach Friday in Philadelphia with some of the city's black leaders.

Immigration has been a major talking point for Trump, who has promised to crack down on undocumented immigration and build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. The business mogul turned politician promised to deport millions of “criminal aliens” Wednesday after visiting with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto.

Trump also vowed to cut amnesty programs passed by the White House, calling them a “Trojan Horse.” People who moved here legally from other countries have noticed. Immigrants who have lived in Sioux Falls for years are moving ahead with citizenship, even though it could mean cutting ties with their country of origin.

Applications peaked earlier this spring across the U.S., and the number of pending applications continues to climb.

“Pending is higher because people are applying because they want to become citizens,” said Henry Evans, a Sioux Falls immigration attorney. “And they may want to vote.”

Evans represents clients who want to stay and work in the country, helping them get visas and citizenship. His workload is higher than ever this year, Evans said.

But he’s not the only one who’s busy.

Caminando Juntos, a Sioux Falls-based ministry operated by a group of Catholic nuns, offers legal services to Hispanic immigrants.

Sister Janet Horstman usually helps about 30 to 40 immigrants each year become naturalized citizens. She’s already submitted 50 applications so far this year and has another 40 on her backlog.

Some are worried about family members who are less stable, Horstman said. Others just want to cast a ballot.

“They’re very nervous about the positions that particularly Donald Trump are taking,” Horstman said. “It just creates that uncertainty and that fear, and I have had people that, they want to vote.”

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Irma Reyas, who recently became a citizen of the United States, gives her 10-month-old son Ocean Landry a kiss while her daughter Lluvia Landry, 3, stands by after arriving home after picking the two kids up from daycare Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, in Sioux Falls.(Photo: Joe Ahlquist / Argus Leader)

Fear of deportation

Maria Lubavich didn’t need Trump's campaign promises to live in fear.

The Sioux Falls mom has been a permanent resident for five years, is married to a U.S. citizen and works two jobs.

But she still worries about being separated from her daughter.

“Of course I’m afraid that someday they can say, ‘Marie, you know what? You can no longer stay here,’” Lubavich said.

Lubavich, 38, started the naturalization process in July, even though she doesn’t think she’ll be a citizen in time to vote.

Deportation remains a fear for some immigrants, even if they’re here legally.

“But it’s also how well can we build relationships and trust between them and government,” said Christy Nicolaisen, executive director of the Multi-Cultural Center of Sioux Falls.

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Irma Reyas, who recently became a citizen of the United States, gets a hug from her daughter Lluvia Landry, 3, while picking her up from daycare Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, in Sioux Falls.(Photo: Joe Ahlquist / Argus Leader)

Nicolaisen’s organization also provides legal services to immigrants hoping to naturalize. The center has experienced an increase in workload this year, though Nicolaisen wasn’t sure if it had anything to do with the election.

The immigration system might be broken, but proposals like a U.S.-Mexico wall will do little to fix the problems, Nicolaisen said. Instead of isolating newcomers and excluding them, she would like to see more opportunities for them to get involved.

The center tries to do just that, offering chances for employment and education.

Regardless of what candidate they favor, participation in local, state and national elections is core to being a U.S. citizen, attorney Evans said.

“The deeper issue in your story is we created this country to get people politically involved,” Evans said.

Attaining U.S. citizenship is a personal decision, and not every immigrant is doing it for political reasons. Julio Avila, 42, doesn't now yet how he'll vote, and he's not sold on Clinton. The Guatemalan native, who received his citizenship last week, thinks Trump might make for a better leader.

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Lluvia Landry, 3, plays while her mom Irma Reyas, who recently became a citizen of the United States, gets Landry's brother out of their vehicle after arriving home from picking the two kids up from daycare Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, in Sioux Falls.(Photo: Joe Ahlquist / Argus Leader)

"He's got good things to say," Avila said. "He’s a smart guy."

Hispanics are the fastest growing subgroup of eligible voters and are expected to increase their ranks by 17 percent between the 2012 and 2016 elections, according to Pew Research Center. About 1.17 million of these new voters are adults who are becoming naturalized.

Not all will vote Democrat, but Trump is still alienating newly naturalized voters such as Astrid Rosario. Rosario, 28, became a citizen last year because she wanted to vote. Trump wasn’t a factor at the time. He announced his candidacy in June, 2015, after the Guatemalan immigrant sent in her paperwork.

But as Rosario prepares for the November election, she’s worried about Trump becoming president.

“With everything he says and then he backtracks, it’s just so confusing,” Rosario said.

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Irma Reyas, who recently became a citizen of the United States, picks up her daughter Lluvia Landry, 3, from daycare Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, in Sioux Falls.(Photo: Joe Ahlquist / Argus Leader)

Her parents came over decades ago as undocumented immigrants. Some of her family members still don’t have the credentials to be in the U.S. legally.

Rosario didn’t watch Trump’s speech this week, but she doesn’t think his ideas are realistic. The amnesty programs he wants to cut provide a valuable resource for teenagers who want to go to college, and for their parents who want to work, Rosario said.

Those needs will continue, wall or no.

“Maybe by sea, by boat, or they may dig a tunnel or more than one tunnel,” Rosario said. “People are going to find a way in.”